Overview
- Germany, Austria, Italy, Portugal and Spain sent a joint letter Saturday asking the European Commission to quickly draft an EU‑wide levy on oil windfalls, addressing it to Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra.
- The ministers cite the Middle East conflict and disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz for lifting global oil prices and piling costs on Europe’s economy, drivers and businesses.
- They propose modeling the measure on the 2022 solidarity levy, which taxed profits more than 20% above the 2019–2021 average at a rate of 33%.
- Key design choices remain open, including how to build a firm EU legal basis and whether to capture multinationals’ overseas profits, and the Commission has not yet tabled a proposal.
- At home, Germany’s municipal association urges a six‑month cut to value‑added tax on energy and basic goods to deliver faster relief for households and small firms.